Life cycle of a daffodil

Written by edriaan koening| 13/05/2017

Daffodils multiply by seed and by bulb. (Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images)

Daffodils (Narcissus) begin life from seed or bulb. Growing from bulb takes less time and produces more predictable plants. Daffodils grow easily in most parts of the USA except Florida. Under good growing conditions, daffodils come back every spring.

Seed

After wind or insect pollinates a flower, seeds develop in the seed pod behind the flower petals. As the seeds ripen, they fall on the ground in the fall and germinate in the spring. Seeds take about five years to reach flowering size.

Bulb Division

The bulb of a daffodil plant naturally multiply underground by division. When the main bulb matures, it creates several new bulbs. These bulbs always produce flowers identical to those of the parent plant.

Blooming

In the spring, daffodil flowers bloom for six weeks to six months, depending on your location and cultivar. In the fall, as the plant prepares its bulbs for the next year, the leaves turn yellow and the plant eventually becomes dormant.